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Supporting Voluntary & Community Action May and June 2009
!Inside Voscur’s MagazineProject Respect: linking generations and cultures
Commissioning Support
Local Election Special
Gypsy and Traveller Focus
Refugee Week
Listening Partnership to overcome bullying
Funding Opportunites
Summer Training
Volunteering News
Recession Support
And much more…
Imag
e: P
roje
ct R
esp
ect
(pag
e 2
2)
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4 Editorial
5-6 Voscur News Commissioning Support Governance and Leadership Support Don’t Suffer in Silence E Forums Website Toolkit Recession Support
7 Sector News Leadership and Management Merger and Collaboration Funding
8 New Voscur Members
9-10 Member Profile Friends of the Avon new Cut Streets Alive
11 How To - ICT Surviving the Big Byte
12-15 Local Election Special Bristol’s Councillor Leaders give their views on the role of the voluntary and community sector
16-19 Voscur Training & Learning Feedback on training Skills – Third Sector Voscur Summer Training
20-25 Equalities and Human Rights Gypsy and Traveller Focus Project Respect Equalities and Human Rights event report
26-27 Children & Young People Listening Partnership Network Feedback MyPlace
28-29 How To - Funding Pages Lottery Small Grants Programmes Arts Council England Heritage lottery Fund Sport England
30-31 How To - Green Pages Park Keepers – How voluntary and community groups help keep Bristol parks and green spaces green and lovely
32-33 Volunteering Bristol Volunteering Week Grant for new work
34 Bristol Partnership Interview with Linda Prosser the new Director of the Local Strategic Partnership
35 Have Your Say Vox Pops
36 Diary
Welcome
www.voscur.org 3
Contents
Disclaimer: some of the views expressed in this publication are those of individual contributors and do not necessarily represent
those of Voscur. Publications, events and services mentioned in Thrive! are not necessarily endorsed by Voscur.
Thrive! is available on disc. Please contact
the office if you would like to
receive your Thrive! this way. The
newsletter is also available online as a pdf
at www.voscur.org/magazine
Why not advertise?Special discounts for Voscur members.Deadlines for July/August 2009 edition of Thrive!:2 June 2009 for ads, 26 June 2009 for flyersDetails of prices at www.voscur.org/magazineor phone Polly Stewart, sub-editor, on 0117 909 9949
Voscur is committed to supporting community activism; we help organisations and individuals get involved in and influence decision making in the city, and we do this in many different ways. One of the ways that we do this is to support Equalities communities.
We recently worked with Support
Against Racist Incidents (SARI),
Churches Council for Industrial and
Social Responsibility (ISR) and the
Women’s Forum to ensure that
under represented communities
are heard at the Bristol Partnership
in the future.
We have supported community
involvement in Neighbourhood
Partnerships this past year, and
in March we started talking with
the Neighbourhood Partnerships
Residents’ Forum about the
involvement of Equalities
Communities in the Partnerships.
Voscur’s ‘Our Voices Count’ event
in February enabled Gypsy and
Traveller communities, Somali
parents, Refugee Women of Bristol,
single parents and lesbian, gay and
bisexual communities to come
together with service providers in
discussion and dialogue. This event
had great support and many useful
connections were made.
We know that many people
support our Equalities work, but
also that this work isn’t popular
with everyone, (in that some
people don’t recognise that
there is a need for it and some
criticise us for doing it). But at
Voscur, we recognise that we will
all be members of a marginalised
community at some point in our
lives. Our work is about supporting
those groups who have historically
been marginalised, to have a voice.
We think that as we go into a
recession this work is even more
vital as minority groups are further
marginalised and at risk of attack.
Our Equalities work has been
funded by the Big Lottery since
2003 and more recently by the
Equalities and Human Rights
Commission. The work is difficult
to fund and we are now at the
point where we have a funding
gap for this work. However, we
won’t give up. Voscur’s Board is
committed to continuing our work
with Equalities groups.
Our reputation for working with
Equalities communities has led to
our being commissioned to deliver
some training with Gypsy and
Traveller Communities and health
professionals outside Bristol.
This work will help to sustain our
Equalities staff team until we can
secure investment to keep this
valuable work going in Bristol.
www.voscur.org4
Editorial
Diversity and Diversification
?
kEy TO SyMbOLS
Equalities Article
Training
Resources
Event
Wendy Stephenson
Governance and Leadership SupportSophie Bayley, Voscur’s Workforce
Development Co-ordinator delivers
an excellent training course
on roles and responsibilities of
trustees/governing bodies. This
training course has been enhanced
by input from Avon and Bristol
Law Centre (For details of Voscur
training see page 35).
Sophie has now also worked
with several groups to deliver
training in-house to management
committees, so that all board
members are receiving the same
information at the same time.
Boards have found this very helpful
and have emerged strengthened
from the experience! We have now
found out that we may be able to
help you get funding to pay for in-
house governance and leadership
training.
If you think your board
needs a refresher course
in its responsibilities,
please contact
Commissioning
SupportLouise Clark will join the Voscur
staff team as Compact Liaison
Officer this month.The work
will link directly to public sector
commissioning of services from
voluntary, community and social
enterprise organisations.
Louise’s role will be to raise the
profile of the sector with public
sector commissioners; help
the sector to respond to the
commissioning agenda and ensure
that we are all working to agreed
standards of good practice.
This post came about as a result
of Voscur’s work as a member
of the Compact funding and
commissioning group. We
recognised that without a
dedicated worker raising awareness
of the Compact, it’s difficult to put
Compact principles into practice.
A programme of activities will
be developed with the support
of the Compact steering group;
we will keep you posted in our
e-bulletins, on the website and in
this magazine.
Don’t Suffer in Silence – get in touch
You are not alone!
Many Voscur members have been
asking us for help to get through
difficult times.
We have answered questions about
employment issues, governance
and finance issues, funding crises,
relationships with funders, and
when we haven’t been able to
offer direct support we have
signposted to other sources of
help.
It may be that we know of another
organisation that has been through
what you are experiencing and has
found a solution. We will always
listen to what you have to say. So,
get in touch.
Wendy Stephenson
Chief Executive, Voscur,
The CREATE centre
Smeaton Road, Bristol, BS1 6XN.
0117 909 9949, [email protected]
Voscur News
www.voscur.org 5
ClarificationIn our last issue of Thrive! our Equalities manager, Ruth Pitter, wrote about her trip to the USA where
she witnessed President Obama’s inauguration which marked a landmark occasion and a triumph for
community activism. This trip was a personal holiday and not paid for by Voscur.
?
www.voscur.org6
Voscur News
Keeping ‘in the loop’ is e-asy with the Voscur ForumsVoscur has online E-Forums to
help you keep up-to-date with
issues affecting you and your
organisation, and to enable
you to easily share information
on particular topics with other
E-Forum users.
We’ve made improvements to the
online forums so it’s easier for you
to sign up and use them.
Now is a great time to register
on the Voscur online forums
– follow our easy step by step
guide at www.voscur.org/
ebulletin
Recession SupportFunding from Capacitybuilders
has enabled Voscur to work with
other infrastructure organisations
in Bristol and the West of England
ChangeUp consortia to develop a
recession busting booklet, which
will be available to download from
our website, and in hard copy from
our office. The booklet will provide
information on risk assessments,
governance, managing in a
downturn, and closing an
organisation.
We have also gathered information
from a range of sources on
everything from The Equalities
and Human Rights Commission
guide to managing in a downturn,
which sets out how employers can
use flexible working and manage
redundancies fairly in the current
climate, to free and cheap ways of
improving and maintaining your IT
systems.
View these at www.voscur.org/
recessionsupport
Website ToolkitDeveloping a website from scratch
can be quite daunting.
Voscur has set up a Website
Development Toolkit online, where
you can sign up to learn about
all the issues that you need to
think about when creating a web
presence for your organisation.
Visit moodle.voscur.org:8000
and follow the instructions.
help for individualsWe are keen to receive applications for funding from individuals who satisfy our criteria, these being: 1.Have a physical disability or long term physical health problem 2.Live in Bristol, BANES, South Glos, Gloucestershire, North Somerset, Somerset or Wiltshire 3.Have a low income and limited savings 4.Be over the age of 16 We are happy to receive applications directly from clients or from referral organisations.
For more information please contact us on 0117 949 4003 or visit: www.communityfund.stmonicatrust.org.uk.
St Monica Trust Community Fund
helps people with one off gifts,
such as cookers, washing machines
and carpets, as well as short- term
grants in crisis situations.
a new oven has meant new sights and smells for Laura
www.voscur.org 7
Sector News
If your organisation has a staff team of between five to 250 employees then you could be eligible for £500 leadership and management training through Train to Gain. There is £1000 available in total.
The first £500 must benefit the one
person identified as the key leader/
manager of the organisation. The
next £500 must be matched by
your organisation but can be used
to support other managers or
trustees in the organisation.
You could use this money,
for example, to support your
management team in strategic
direction, coaching or mentoring,
or tailor made training packages.
Voscur offers tailor made
training packages in Roles and
Responsibilities of Trustees and
can support you to apply for the
money if you are interested. Call
Sophie Bayley on 0117 909 9949
Train to Gain also offers support for
other staff members through Skills
for Life which offers a variety of
training courses for staff who have
few formal qualifications.
For more details
on how to access
this funding, please
contact the South
West Region’s Third
Sector Skills Broker,
Marisa McClelland on
01202 847607
To find out more about Train
to Gain and the third sector,
download their document at
snipurl.com/gcyxg (pdf)
Leadership and Management - £500 available for training
Money to Support Merger and Collaboration
Capacitybuilders is offering bursaries
to organisations considering
collaboration and merger. The
bursaries are to pay for two days
of advice/consultancy on the
issues relating to collaboration and
merger. If, following the advice,
groups decide that this is the route
that they want to take, they may
be eligible for a further £10,000 to
support their merger.
For further details of this scheme visit
www.voscur.org/recessionsupport
?
Voscur New Members
www.voscur.org8
Voscur New Membersbedminster Tenant Management Organisation Steering Group The group want to establish a TMO (a non profit making company managed by tenants and leaseholders with responsibility for some or all of the housing management functions currently undertaken by the local authority) to tackle and improve the quality of life for all Bedminster tenants and leaseholders.snipurl.com/gd15n (pdf)
brislington Enterprise College Brislington Enterprise College (BEC) is an 11-18 Local Education Authority mixed comprehensive college set in sixty acres of attractive grounds overlooking Bristol.www.because.org.uk
bristol Epilepsy Support Group The Bristol Epilepsy Support Group offer people whose lives are affected by the condition a chance to get together and discuss the issues that matter to them.www.bristolepilepsy.com
The bristol Festival Community Group The Bristol Festival Community Group is a collection of volunteers, with a wide range of backgrounds, interests and ages, who have come together to plan a community-based festival, following the sad
demise of the Bristol Community Festival at Ashton Court.www.thebristolfestival.org
Coexist Community Interest Company Coexist is a mixed use building on Stokes Croft, Bristol, which is undergoing major refurbishment so that it can become a centre of excellence in terms of sustainable communities.www.coexistuk.org
Four Towns & Vale Link Community TransportA charity, based in South Gloucestershire, formed by the merger of two community transport charities – Four Towns and Vale Link each served Patchway and Thornbury respectively.
The aim of the Four Towns and Vale Link Community Transport is to increase opportunities and develop a more inclusive community by improving [email protected]
GAVCA - Gloucestershire Association for Voluntary & Community Action (Associate)Supports and represents local voluntary action by working in partnership to promote equality. www.gavca.org.uk
Impatient Vagrant Impatient Vagrant began in 2007 in order to bring accessible community theatre into the rural areas of South Gloucestershire.The company passionately believes that theatre can bring a community together to celebrate and engage with its history and culture. www.impatientvagrant.com
The New Room - John Wesley’s ChapelThe New Room in Bristol is the oldest Methodist Chapel in the world (originally built in 1739) and the cradle of the early Methodist movement.www.newroombristol.org.uk
Statue in courtyard of The New Room
www.voscur.org 9
200th Anniversary of Avon New CutThis year marks the 200th
anniversary of the completion of
the Avon New Cut and Feeder
Canal and the opening of Bristol’s
Floating Harbour. Celebrations of
this important event in our city’s
history will go on throughout 2009,
starting with a special
The original celebration in May
1809 involved a party where a hog
roast and a specially brewed beer
were enjoyed by the Irish builders
and Bristol townsfolk alike.
Brunel’s ss Great Britain is running
a hog roast, the Bristol Beer
Factory has produced a special ‘Cut
Blaster’ beer, and the Friends of
the Avon New Cut have organised
entertainment for the whole family
including:
Tales of the Cut with an Irish •
actor and ‘Show of Strength’
theatre group
Irish dancers and Morris dancers•
A jazz band •
Sea shanty singers•
A treasure hunt - plus other fun •
and games for children
Fascinating facts and images •
of the New Cut and Floating
Harbour.
Drop in any time.
Free event!
The Avon New Cut and the Floating HarbourBristol’s port was originally sited in
the centre of the city on the River
Avon. It was the second-busiest
port in the country during the early
18th century, but the tidal nature
of the river increasingly caused
problems for ships. Traders began
to use other ports instead, and a
solution was needed if Bristol was
to maintain its wealth.
William Jessop, a civil engineer,
developed a plan to divert the River
Avon away from the docks area
through a new artificial channel
- or cut - leaving the docks as a
“floating harbour”.
The Cut was dug by Irish and other
travelling labourers - mainly using
picks, shovels and wheelbarrows,
but also gunpowder to blast a way
through the rock. It took five years
to complete.
Friends of the Avon New Cut
The Friends of the Avon New Cut
(FrANC) is a group of local people
promoting a greater understanding
and appreciation of the Cut,
including its history, wildlife, and
essential role in the city.
FrANC runs guided walks, organises
riverbank clean-up sessions,
produces regular newsletters, and
has published wildlife leaflets and
a book about the Avon New Cut.
Further information is available at
www.southvillecentre.org.uk.
Member Profile
Friends of the Avon new Cut
Statue in courtyard of The New Room
Fun Day on Monday 4 May12.30 - 5pm by Brunel’s ss Great Britain
www.voscur.org10
Streets Alive is a charitable group, based in Bristol but working across the UK, which promotes the street as a social space, developing culturally thriving communities through traffic-free street events.
Since 2001, Streets Alive have
developed special ways of
engaging with the public and
communities on social and
travel issues in street events and
other activities. Specialising in
community-based events which
engage the public in creative and
meaningful ways on issues of social
cohesion, greener travel, arts,
sports and children’s play.
Streets Alive is a key partner in a
new exciting campaign being led
by the Eden Project called ‘The
Big Lunch’ which is encouraging
people to have street party-style
events. The focus of the big lunch
is on food - growing, cooking and
sharing it.
The campaign is a welcome
boost to Streets Alive’s efforts
to promote street parties, and it
is hoped that across the country
thousands of people will join in
‘The Big Lunch’ on Sunday 19 July.
If any residents, groups or Councils
have any questions or practical
issues that need solving then
contact Streets Alive and they
will try to help if the answer is
not already on their street party
website: www.streetparty.org.uk
You can also view
details by visiting
www.streetsalive.net
www.thebiglunch.com
Member Profile
Streets Alive - Lets do it in the street!
The IT industry, unlike cars and clothing, appears to be riding out the recession so far. Most people need access to IT to do their jobs; even small organisations run from home. With reducing budgets and new fundraising opportunities growing scarcer, relying on equipment that is growing old and unstable can be a stressful experience.
However, there are new ways
of doing things on the web,
and adopting new methods of
working allows groups to hear of
opportunities and access help more
quickly, plus get their message out
to a new and larger audience.
How can you do that without
spending large sums on
equipment, support, training and
time on managing it all?
Voscur 4 point plan for surviving the Big Byte1) Risk assessment - Think about
what could possibly go wrong -
hardware failure, viruses and data
loss are all organisational killers or
at least very inconvenient. List all
eventualities - don’t forget the
member of staff who manages
the database who might decide to
emigrate!
2) Plan and budget - you may
not be going to spend any money
this year, but how much did you
spend last year and how much the
year before? What would it cost
to replace a computer? Could you
use a refurbished one? Do your
trustees understand the issues and
can you bring them on board?
Think of the costs implied by your
risk assessment and then make a
budget to cover the most likely
elements.
3) Get Value for Money - use the
Voscur website for top tips for
free and “value for money” tools
and support. We are re-organising
the ICT pages to highlight new
developments in how the Voluntary
Sector is adapting to the free
software revolution and the rise
of social networking as a tool for
being more effective in your job.
Our ICT recession buster page has
just been published -www.voscur.
org/ictrecessionbuster
and we’ll be highlighting and
comparing software services such
as our new Surveys article -
www.voscur.org/onlinesurveys
4) know where to go for help
- use the Voscur directory and
forums to know where to go for
help and support. The Voscur ICT
Directory lists companies, social
enterprises and individuals from
PC specialists to website designers
that other Voscur members have
recommended.
The forums are managed by Voscur
staff to answer all your queries (not
just ICT) and they can be accessed
through the website
(see the article on signing up for
the forums on page 7). You can
also post your own tips that might
benefit other Voscur members.
Lets get talking!
Sean Kenny, ICT Development
Worker [email protected]
How To - ICT
www.voscur.org 11
Surviving the Big Byte
Photo: www.flickr.com/photos/jmarty/
Councillor Charlie Bolton - Green Party
The Green Party should be the
natural party of the voluntary
sector. We do not see the sector
as a pawn in the battle to roll back
the frontiers of the state. We do
not see it as a way of delivering
public services on the cheap. We
also do not see it as a substitute
for the kind of social and economic
reform governments are too timid
to introduce themselves.
What has finally been recognised
in the new local government
performance framework National
Indicator 7, is something the
Green Party has always understood
instinctively – that the voluntary
sector, like everything else, needs
the right kind of environment to
thrive.
Nationally, a Green government
would introduce a radical series
of measures going back to the
very essence of the sector –
volunteering. Our manifesto
unsurprisingly calls for the ‘proper
sustainable funding’ of VCOs. But
it also goes much further than
that, seeking to lay the basis for
a cultural shift in relation to the
concept of volunteering, and
traditional economics’ blithe
discounting of the value of
‘community voluntary work’.
In the end, what makes the sector
unique is its ability to mobilise
volunteers, and the resulting
independence from the political
agenda of the day. A voluntary
sector that tries to expand without
expanding its volunteer base is
ultimately unsustainable.
What matters is not warm words
around partnership and yet
more rhetoric about the sector’s
importance. What matters is the
bottom line: stable funding cycles,
effective capacity building, full cost
recovery. And once that is in place,
an emphasis on proper consultation
and properly utilising the sector’s
expertise in shaping services.
This is hardly revolutionary – largely
it’s just sticking to Compact. But
this is an area where even an
individual councillor can play an
important role: that of keeping
up the pressure on statutory
authorities to abide by Compact
guidelines. This means drawing
attention to those that do this well,
just as much as pointing out those
who do not.
The VCS in this city is well-
organised and well-represented,
and will weather the storm better
than most. But tough times are
coming, and the culture that would
ensure the sector thrives even in
bad times is not yet fully in place.
This is what the Green Party will be
working to achieve in the coming
months and years.
Local Election Special
www.voscur.org12
Local Election SpecialIn advance of the local elections we asked the lead councillors of the four political parties on Bristol City Council to write for Thrive! We asked for their views on the role of voluntary and community sector (VCS) in Bristol and what, if elected, councillors from their party would do to ensure the local VCS thrives?
Councillor Barbara Janke - Liberal Democrat PartyA thriving voluntary community
sector
As the leader of Bristol City Council,
I understand that the city council
cannot tackle all of the issues that
face our society alone and we
need to work closely with other
organisations and communities to
find the most effective ways of
delivering services. In Bristol, the
voluntary, community and social
enterprise sector has an important
part to play in understanding local
need and is often best placed
to deliver activities, services and
support that best meets the
needs of often some of the most
vulnerable groups in our city.
Working together during the
recession
Much of Bristol’s voluntary sector
is working hard to help people who
have suffered as a result of the
recession. The Liberal Democrats
recognise the importance of this
work and have backed plans to
offer additional support to help
deliver this work. This includes
additional support for Bristol Credit
Union to help those struggling
with debt, support for apprentices,
and measures have been put
in place to make it easier for
people to get advice and support
through a variety of networks. By
strengthening the relationship
between the council and the small
voluntary community sector the
two sectors together can make a
difference and help us withstand
the impacts of the recession.
Strengthening local communities
The Liberal Democrats want to
bring decision-making closer to
the people and the communities
they affect. We want local people
to have the chance to make real
local choices and will build on
the Neighbourhood Partnerships
now in place by establishing local
budgets. We would do this by
delegating matters, currently
centrally determined, for decision
at local level.
Community Asset Transfer
We know that some of the
council’s buildings would provide
good bases for community
led third sector organisations, but these are often in need of
refurbishment. We are working to
find ways to transfer these assets
to the third sector on a viable
basis where possible, and to build
on successful projects that have
already taken place.
A good working relationship
between the council and the
small voluntary and community
sector is vital to the success of our
communities. We are committed to
the Bristol Compact to strengthen
positive working relationships
between the public and voluntary,
community and social enterprise
sectors to ensure the best
outcomes for Bristol people.
www.voscur.org 13
Local Election Special
www.voscur.org14
Councillor Helen Holland - Labour PartyTogether We Can Make a
Difference in our City
Many Labour councillors, candidates
and Party members work with
voluntary and community
organisations locally, and have
learned much of our role from you.
Thank you! Many councillors sit on
management committees of local
organisations, and work closely with
you.
The role of councils and councillors,
is changing, and local members are
becoming ‘community champions’.
Labour expects our members
to get to know organisations in
their wards, and work alongside
them. This is a real priority for
newly-elected Labour members,
so that they can reflect an in-
depth understanding at every
level from street to ward, from
Neighbourhood Partnership to
Bristol-wide.
Labour councillors know the
value of your work with some of
the most vulnerable people in
the city. We know that times are
changing for the sector and for
many organisations; with more call
for your services during the global
recession, and concerns about
sustainability of groups. We pledge
to work with you, understanding
that without your work, the call on
statutory services would be even
greater.
You support communities, you
innovate - with services grown
from local people addressing local
concerns. You bring additional
capacity to communities, you give
local people pathways to volunteer,
and personal development through
that volunteering, and we celebrate
that with you.
However, we need more than warm
words to back the sector. We need
policies and action to make this
happen.
Labour councillors will ensure that:
the Voluntary Community •
Sector is involved in designing
specifications for commissioned
services
that the Council agrees ‘full •
cost recovery’ as essential for
maintaining groups’ financial
viability
that monitoring, evaluating and •
reporting are transparent, and
agreed with the sector.
This is why Labour champions the
Bristol Compact, the agreement
between public agencies and the
voluntary sector, which defines the
relationship we should have.
Unfortunately, there are parts of
the Council where the working
principles of the Compact have not
been taken on board, and Labour
councillors will make embedding
this, across all departments, a
priority.
We will also commit to making
best use of Government policy
to transfer assets to community
organisations, as we have done at
St Werburgh’s Community Centre.
We will meet our LAA (Local Area
Agreement) commitment to
ensuring a ‘thriving environment
for the third sector’, not just within
the Council, but also with the
Bristol Partnership, strengthening
the role of the sector, so that
together we can build better
neighbourhoods, and make a
difference in our city.
Local Election Special
Councillor Richard Eddy - Conservative PartyThe Role of the Voluntary and
Community Sector
Philosophically, the Conservative
Party has always placed great value
on the ability of individuals to help
themselves rather than always
rely, passively, on the intervention
of the State to solve social ills.
Historically, we have acknowledged
the indispensable part played by
the voluntary and community
sector in helping to build a better,
more prosperous society.
We recognise that the centralised
State - particularly in Britain today
- is unable to both identify and
deliver the kind of social reforms
so desperately needed. In our
so-called “broken society”, family
dislocation and crime has become
rife and traditional values and
loyalties no longer seem to apply.
Nationally, Conservatives have
conducted an extensive review
into how we can best address
these failings and promote
greater voluntarism, altruism and
community action. The consultative
policy green paper ‘A Stronger
Society: Voluntary Action in the
21st Century’ forms part of our
responsibility agenda and places at
its heart the vision of an expanded
role for voluntary and community
work.
For Conservatives, a good and
strong society can only be built
organically from the bottom-up;
relying first upon the individual,
then through their private
relationships with family and
friends. This myriad of associations
eventually become intermingled
with more formal or organised
structures or public expressions
of civic life - the realm of the
voluntary and community sector.
This is the where we must look for
answers that neither the State nor
the market can provide.
The next Conservative Government
is committed to expanding what
some have called this ‘third sector’,
to enable the delivery of better,
more effective and responsive
public services via charities,
social enterprises and voluntary
organisations.
This sea-change envisages a future
where there are more direct
contractual arrangements forged,
increased use of grant funding
and a greater emphasis placed on
charitable giving and volunteering.
Our approach is not to seek to
change the voluntary sector but
to alter the way that Government
interacts with it. In the future,
funding will be channelled through
grassroots organisations, not
merely dispensed by unelected
bureaucrats or unaccountable
Whitehall appointed quangos.
Successive post-war
Administrations have come to
realise that the State can never be
a substitute for the community.
At best, it can seek to work in
partnership with the voluntary
sector but must never try to
replace or supplant it.
www.voscur.org 15
Local Election Special
Poppy Stephenson from Bristol Festival Community Group talks about her organisation and the Trustee training she attended at Voscur
The Bristol Festival Community Group was set up in
2007 to support and promote arts and culture in the
South West region. This involves organising a publicly
directed volunteer-led community festival in the city,
which showcases local talent, supports local businesses
and provides training, mentoring and a rewarding
experience to volunteers. Local community and youth
groups are also involved in year-round projects to
create décor, site furniture, artwork and train for
performances at the event.
Why did you come on the training?
We recently gained charity status and being new to
trusteeship we felt it was important to learn as much
as we can about our responsibilities.
What did you hope to gain from the
sessions and what did you gain?
I wanted to further my understanding of my official
duties as well as pick up some ideas about how we
could improve the running our organisation, to make
sure we weren’t missing anything important. I gained
a lot of really useful information to take back to our
group, not just from the course but also from the
other participants; it was really interesting to find out
about other charities’ structures and how they do
things.
What will you do differently as a result
of the sessions?
We are a very small team with just one paid member
and so we all muck in to get the day to day workload
done, however we will now make sure we regularly
take time to swap our ‘volunteer hats’ for ‘trustee
hats’ to focus on the bigger picture. I feel that
creating this distinction between our roles will help us
to remain on track and will allow the whole team to
recognise the value of their positions as trustees.
Voscur is running Trustees series 1,2 and 3
this term. Please visit:
www.voscur.org/training
www.voscur.org16
Voscur Training and learning
Trustee Training Review
Poppy Stephenson
“I found the sessions really informative and enjoyable. It’s made me feel more confident in my role and I would definitely recommend them to anyone that’s new to trusteeship”
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www.voscur.org 17
Voscur Training & Learning
After several years of lobbying, the sector has finally persuaded government to create a new, independent Third Sector skills body, ‘Skills – Third Sector’ which will identify and address skills gaps and shortages for charities, voluntary groups, social enterprises and other third sector organisations. It will pull together the work of the sector skills councils to open up learning opportunities for third sector paid and voluntary staff.
It is well overdue but it is a
positive step that someone will
have the authority to ensure
that our sector’s needs are
properly considered in the
design development of National
Occupational Standards, the design
of Apprenticeship Frameworks and
Sector Qualification Strategies.
This puts our sector on an
equal basis with other sectors
in ensuring that our needs are
being considered in designing
qualifications and allocating
funding for training.
Janet Fleming (Head of the
Workforce Hub) has been seconded
to act as Project Director in order
to set up this new organisation
- incubated in the short term by
Skills for Justice.
The new body will be introduced
at a series of third sector national
learning alliance launch events
regional events.
The South West event, ‘Skills for
Solutions’ took place in April in
Taunton, so look out for further
information on Voscur’s website:
www.voscur.org
Contact Tim Ward
Learning Curve www.
learningcurve.org.uk
Support for Community Development Practitioners in Bristol
Do you work in and with
communities? Do ever feel like you
would like support from people
doing similar work to you? Are you
in need of some new ideas?
Voscur is launching a Community
Development Network which
aims to bring together often
isolated community development
practitioners from across Bristol
who want to support each other,
share information, experience, skills
and ways of working.
The Network is open to public,
private, community and voluntary
sector practitioners who use a
community development approach
to their work.
The Community Development
Exchange (CDX) defines Community
Development as, ‘the process of
developing active and sustainable
communities based on social justice
and mutual respect. It is about
influencing power structures to
remove the barriers that prevent
people from participating in the
issues that affect their lives’.
The Bristol network will meet bi-
monthly and each meeting will be
themed around issues agreed by
its members. These themes will
be agreed at the next meeting on
Monday 11 May 10am – 12pm,
at Bristol Community Housing
Foundation Office, 400 Filton
Avenue BS7 0LN.
Contact Hannah Parker at Voscur if
you would like to attend,
0117 909 9949.
New Independent Skills Body Created:Skills - Third Sector
www.voscur.org18
Writing better funding bidsTuesday 12 May (9.30am-3.30pm) at The Gatehouse Centre, Hareclive Road, Bristol BS13 9JNThis course will give you all the skills you need to make
effective fundraising proposals for your organisation. It
is aimed at those quite new to fundraising or those who
want to know more about writing successful applications
to grants, trusts and the local government. It will cover
developing ideas about your project; filling in forms;
writing and developing outcomes and action planning.
How to develop a business planWednesday 20 May (9.30am-3.30pm) at CEED, Ujima House, Wilder Street, Bristol BS2 8QU This course is for anyone who is planning to write a
business plan and doesn’t know where to start. It will give
you lots of hints and tips to help you get started and will
cover the business planning process and the planning
cycle; audience, purpose and content of your plan;
who needs to be involved and vision, mission, aims and
objectives.
Trustee Series 1- Why am I on the committee?*Tuesday 2 June (6.30pm-9.30pm) at City Academy, Russell Town Avenue, Redfield, Bristol BS5 9JHThis course is for those people who are trustees who
want to know more about their roles, responsibilbites
and duties as trustees. It will cover your legal obligations
as well as offer information on the different roles you
have to take as a trustee. *(Previously known as Roles and
Responsibilities of Trustees 1)
Voscur is aware that training is one of the first things to go when money is tight in the sector.
This is why ALL of our courses are designed to help the long-term sustainability of your organisation and its staff. We also run low-cost and free training where we can.
Training
To book onto any of our courses go online to www.voscur.org/training or call us on 0117 909 9949.
Voscur Training & Learning
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www.voscur.org 19
Trustee Series 2 - Good Governance – How to be a better trustee *Tuesday 9 June (6.30pm-9.30pm) at City Academy, Russell Town Avenue, Redfield, Bristol BS5 9JHThis course is for those people who have been
trustees for a while and want to know more about
how to be effective in their role. It will cover the
governance/management split as well as skills
audits, effective meetings and risk and liability.
*(Previously known as Roles and Responsibilities
of Trustees 2. We recommend that you attend
Trustee Series 1 first).
Making Outcomes Work for youWednesday 17 June & Wednesday 8 July (9.30am - 4.00pm) at The Withywood Centre, Queens Road, Withywood, Bristol BS13 8QAThis 2-day course aimed at senior members
of staff or project workers will help you to
understand outcomes and give you all you need
to consider implementing an outcomes focus in
your organisation. It will cover outcomes, outputs,
indicators, collection methods and lots more.
Please note we recommend that two people
attend from each organisation.
Trustee Series 3 - So you think you’re a charity? – Understanding legal structures for organisationsTuesday 30 June (10am-1pm) at Black Development Agency, Russell Town Avenue, Redfield, Bristol BS5 9LTThis session is for trustees or senior staff who
want to know more about their legal structure
and those you have dealings with. It will also help
you assess whether your legal structure meets your
current needs and look at options for future change
or development.
Speaking with ConfidenceTuesday 14 July (9.30am - 3.30pm) at The Greenway Centre, Doncaster Road, Southmead, Bristol, BS10 5PYThis session is aimed at people who need more
confidence, skills and practice of speaking in public.
This practical session will cover: exploring some of
your fears and barriers to public speaking; how to put
together presentations and some of the skills needed
to speak in public. You will be asked to deliver a mini
presentation on the day.
Collaboration and MergerWednesday 15 July (9.30am - 3.30pm) at Windmill Hill City Farm, Philip Street, Bedminster, BS3 4EAThis workshop, facilitated by NCVO’s (National Council
for Voluntary Organisations) collaborative working
project, will look at collaboration and merger and
how it can work for you. Among other things it
will cover the benefits, obstacles and challenges
for collaboration and the legal implications of
collaboration and merger.
Keep an eye out for our free courses in
partnership with ProHelp on Data Protection,
Confidentiality and Employment Law.
To book and for more details go to
www.voscur.org/training or contact Anna Polanek at
Voscur on 0117 909 9949, [email protected]
New
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Voscur Training & Learning
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Gypsies and Travellers are among the most disadvantaged groups in our society; they experience poorer health, higher infant mortality rates and the lowest educational attainment of all UK communities.
How many Gypsies and Travellers
are there in England?
Gypsy, Roma, Traveller (GRT)
communities in England are not
distinguished by either the Census
or many ethnic record systems.
Estimates are between 180,000
and 350,000, the majority living in
bricks and mortar housing.
Who is covered under
legislation?
Race Relations legislation covers
Romany Gypsies and Irish Travellers.
As Showpeople (fairground and
circus), Bargees (water travelling
communities), New Travellers
or New Age Travellers are not
recognised as ethnic groups
they are not covered, although
they could meet the Housing Act
and planning definitions. All are
covered under the Human Rights
Act.
Health
GRT communities have between
2 – 5 times more health problems
than other UK residents. Their life
expectancy is on average 10 – 12
years less than other UK residents;
the average age of death among
GRT men is 53. Infant mortality
rates are 3 times higher, children
are 1.5 – 2 times more likely to die
in the first year of life than children
in non-GRT families.
Reasons such as lack of full access
to health services, suspicion about
health services, being housed
in substandard accommodation
and high levels of mental health
issues contribute to this. One
settled traveller who suffered from
arthritis and diabetes did not have
a phone and making appointments
with the doctor was difficult.
Another said that when her
husband felt ill he did not go for
tests, and found out he had cancer
when it was too late for treatment
– for some GRT communities the
custom is that people die at home,
but he was not offered palliative
care because health workers would
not come out to the traveller site.
Housing
Local Authorities were required
to find sites for GRT communities
until 1994 when the Criminal
and Justice and Public Order Act
was introduced and Travellers
were encouraged to buy their
own land. However, over 90% of
planning applications are refused
as opposed to 20% of non-traveller
applications.
The Gypsy and Traveller
Accommodation Assessments
(GTAAs) indicate that mobility and
travelling have reduced over the
years for reasons such as access to
health and education, nowhere to
stop safely or fear of losing a site
place. Relative ‘settlement’ does
not, however, mean that many
GRT want to lose their identity
www.voscur.org20
Equalities & Human Rights
Gypsy and Traveller Month – June 2009
Image: www.flickr.com/photos/scuoladiatene
www.voscur.org 21
Equalities & Human Rights
or to move to bricks and mortar
accommodation.
When living in settled communities,
retaining their culture and lifestyle
is still very important.
Evidence shows that settled
travellers experience poorer health
than roadside communities. There
is a sense of feeling trapped and
imprisoned, there are imposed
regulations on traveller sites. For
example some permanent sites
prohibit residents from plumbing in
water systems; the lack of running
water in caravans conflicts with
strict hygiene rules in some GRT
cultures.
Education and Employment
From assessments carried out from
the School Census since 2003,
OfSTED has stated that GRT children
and young people are ‘the most at
risk in the education system.’
They are the lowest attaining
amongst all minority ethnic groups.
Poor education means most GRT
communities are disadvantaged
in the job market and although
communities have traditionally
been self employed this is changing
as families are more static; they
therefore need sensitive training
and support to develop their
potential.
Criminal justice
There is no evidence that offending
among GRT communities is higher
than among other groups, yet a
disproportionate number of GRT
men are incarcerated; hence prison
sentences are more likely to be
the outcome of prosecutions for
this group. Some GRT communities
also view the Criminal Justice and
Public Order Act as prejudicial to
their housing needs. In terms of
victimisation, GRT communities
face extremely high levels of
discrimination and harassment yet
do not benefit from the range of
services provided for victims of
crime and hate crime.
Services
Work targeted at BME communities
often neglects the needs of GRT
communities. There are few
voluntary sector groups established
to support specific needs; those
that do exist tend to be national or
regional bodies.
Otherwise, there is a high
reliance on statutory provision
yet discriminatory institutional
and individual attitudes mean
GRT communities do not get the
same level of services as non-GRT
communities. Research shows
that only 20% of PCT services
have any targeted provision for
GRT communities (although this is
currently changing with the PCT
Pacesetters pilot programme that
aims to raise awareness among
health workers of GRT needs).
Meanwhile, schools need to be
effectively managing the needs of
GRT children whether travelling or
settled.
For more information
on Gypsy and traveller
communities visit:
Voscur website:
www.voscur.org
Bristol City Council ‘Gypsy
and Traveller myth buster booklet’:
www.bristol.gov.uk
Friends, Families and Travellers:
www.gypsy-traveller.org
The Gypsy Council:
www.thegypsycouncil.org.uk
“Evidence shows that settled travellers experience poorer health than roadside communities.”
Image: www.flickr.com/photos/scuoladiatene
www.voscur.org22
Equalities & Human Rights
National Refugee week is 15 – 21 June and in this edition of Thrive! we are featuring important work to combat prejudice.
Recent government research
found that many refugees are well
educated and qualified, and could
contribute more if prejudice did
not stand in their way.
Targeted work to bring
communities together to share
experiences and awareness is an
ideal way of combating prejudice
and alienation. Victoria Appleton
describes one such project that has
been taking place in Bristol:
Through funding from Quartet
Community Foundation Fund for
Older People, the Trinity Centre
extended ‘Project Respect’,
reuniting some original participants
and welcoming new participants.
The first phase of the project
involved workshops with young
people and international Elders,
now living in Bristol, which resulted
in the creation of a sculpture and
time capsule.
The second phase of ‘Project
Respect’ brought together young
people from refugee and other
cultural backgrounds from the
DICE Project (Disablist Incidents
and Crime Education) at the City
Academy Bristol, supported by
Young Bristol, with Elders mainly
from Caribbean communities. The
participants shared experiences
and life stories in six exchange
sessions over six weeks. The focus
was on positive interaction of age
groups and cultures.
Elders had the opportunity to
spend time with young people,
some of whom had only been
in this country for a couple of
months. They found the young
people lively, kind and interested
in the exchange and felt honoured
to be part of their lives during the
sessions.
Young People appreciated that the
Elders had given up their time to
show interest and that they were
willing to support them. In return,
they wanted to take care of them,
particularly those needing support
with physical mobility. They learnt
that older people are not boring,
and that they don’t always order
you around!
The project has been effective in
offering opportunities for talking
together and inter-generational
and multi-cultural interaction. It
took people out of their comfort
zone and got them to open up
about issues of prejudice; showing
that such attitudes and beliefs are
not necessary.
It also provided a safe place
for the participants to explore
aspects of their own and each
others life story, the process of
which underlined the value and
preciousness of each one of those
lives.
For more information
contact Emma at the
Trinity Centre on
[email protected] or Victoria on
Refugee Action:
www.refugee-action.org.uk
Refugee Council:
www.refugeecouncil.org.uk
United Nations High Commission
for Refugees:
www.unhcr.org.uk
Bristol City Council Refugee and
Asylum Seeker myth busting
booklet:
www.bristol.gov.uk
Saltford Myth buster:
www.salford.gov.uk/living/
advice/refugee.htm
Project Respect: linking generations and cultures
www.voscur.org 23
Equalities & Human Rights
How communities benefited by finding and using their voices
The aim of Voscur’s EHRC project was to encourage good relations by improving dialogue, integration and cohesion between equalities groups.
The need for this project cannot
be underestimated. How often
do we attend meetings and
hear reports about particular
communities rather than reports
from communities? The project
needed to challenge this process;
it meant having to start at a place
that didn’t involve jargon such as
Development Frameworks or Local
Area Agreements but purely with
people’s own stories.
Many of the communities we
worked with were not used
to speaking out about what
concerned them. Some felt that
they wouldn’t be listened to
because ‘their English wasn’t good
enough’ or they had low literacy
skills, or because they were just not
important enough.
Refugee women not only enjoyed
the training but found it helped
them to recognise their existing
skills as well as improve them.
Teenage parents talked about how
much they were enthused and able
to explore ideas and were able to
feel confident about expressing
their thoughts without being
judged.
It was crucial that the project
enabled communities to challenge
the views they had of themselves
- for example: tolerance of
discrimination and prejudice,
gratitude for what the UK had
offered them, or a perception that
they had nothing of any value
to say.
One participant from the Gypsy and
Traveller community said that the
project had transformed his life.
He had previously not been aware
of the level of discrimination he
experienced until he had sat down
and thought about it at the training.
Voscur’s Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) project
Somali parents from Hannah More School, celebrate completion of the ‘Confident to Present’ course
www.voscur.org24
Equalities & Human Rights
StoriesGetting people to start by
developing their own stories
enabled them to realise that their
experiences were as valuable as
everyone else’s, and that their
aspirations for their families,
or their own choice of career
were similar to many others
from communities that were
different from them. The project’s
particpants were able to reflect on
issues affecting their everyday lives
and think about ways of expressing
them; it gave them a voice.
Being able to explore this in a
supportive and creative way
enabled them to gain huge levels
of confidence when they realised
they could have direct access
to agencies, such as at Voscur’s
Our Voices Count event. The
project’s particpants had a lot to
tell and people wanted to listen to
them. Some Somali parents said
the process of learning to give
presentations also improved their
English as well as their confidence.
We sometimes talk about
Gypsies and Travellers, refugee
communities, teenage / lone
parents, Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual
(LGB) communities as being ‘hard
to reach’. Yet the project identified
that as well as being far from
hard to reach; there was a great
feeling of isolation and this was
frustrating; it destroys confidence
to interact as equal participants in
society. Many participants talked
about gaining confidence and
being able to demonstrate more
leadership during the project.
PartnershipsThe project brought people closer
to agencies and service providers,
and allowed them to realise the
power they can have when they
express their own issues and are
listened to. Agencies have made
contacts since the project started
and have begun processes seeking
ways in which they can work
together, or offer support.
For Refugee women, being part of
specifically targeted training was
important in their personal and
working lives; they felt appreciated
for the work they do and have
forged partnerships to work with
other organisations.
“One participant from the Gypsy and Traveller community said that the project had transformed his life. ”
Workshop participants at ‘Our Voices Count’ Event Ruth Pitter, Voscur’s Equalities manager
Where next?More contacts need to be
established so that the learning
and confidence participants
have gathered is harnessed so
they benefit from how services
are delivered. There needs to be
more opportunities for bringing
participants from across the
equalities strands together to
discuss a specific focus, say,
housing, or health, that will help
inform and improve services.
There should be more field trips for
communities to question providers
about how services are managed
and how they could be improved.
Communities and partners also
want more of this training; we
have only touched the tip of the
iceberg, many people have asked
if we would re-run the training for
others in their group / community.
When we applied for the funding
to do this work we did not envisage
the overwhelming response,
despite this, we will continue to
support groups in whatever way we
possibly can.
Why does your organisation matter?If your organisation hasn’t thought
about how it might deliver services
more effectively with marginalised
communities then please do.
Communities are desperate
for support with issues such as
housing, health and community
safety. Please see the EHRC page
on the Voscur website for contact
details of those we worked with.
There are so many potential
benefits to be reaped when
communities are at the heart of
activity and delivery. As a result of
the project, Refugee women have
worked with ‘Planning Aid’ at their
drop-in to discuss how they can
improve support to the refugee
community. The training enabled
women to focus on issues of
importance to them personally and
in their work.
Effective community development
work requires learning, time and
resources, especially when working
with communities who don’t often
have such opportunities – these
can indeed be crucial, life changing
opportunities.
Ruth Pitter, Equalities
Manager; Sophie Bayley,
Workforce Development
Co-ordinator
www.voscur.org 25
Equalities & Human Rights
Larry Harvey and Fardousa Diisow Participants at the event
Listening Partnership is a Bristol-based forum group for young disabled people aged 13-25, funded by Bristol City Council and hosted by WECIL, (West of England Centre for Independent Living).
Meeting once a week to discuss any
disability related issue, it consults
with organisations in the council
on delivery of services, and offers
both an opportunity to learn new
skills and to socialise.
Group members had experienced
bullying due to their impairments,
so decided to make a DVD entitled
‘In Other Words’ to raise awareness
of bullying and harassment. The
Prince’s Trust helped them to
get funding for filming; Youth
Opportunity Funding funded
two launch events, plus publicity
material.
The DVD features individuals
speaking to camera about an
experience, followed by drama
sketches. Six individuals spoke
directly to the camera - three were
animated - interjected with drama
sketches:
A young person’s experience of •
being called a cheat by fellow
students for using a support
worker in an exam
Confiding in a staff member •
about the incident
A fictitious account of a •
wheelchair user entering a
café, to write an article about
its accessibility.
The actors’ thoughts were added
alongside the dialogue giving a
humorous twist. They wanted the
film to show individual personalities
and to involve humour to
contradict stereotypical views of
disabled people.
They had a great team including
Becky Bell and Jen Howard Coles,
film-makers; Marcus FitzGibbon,
Graphic Designer, Shelley Hart of
The Prince’s Trust and Nick Smith
of WECIL, providing valuable
background support.
The initial plan to offer free
workshops and DVDs to Bristol
educational establishments
has had to be extended due to
demand, and national distribution
is now being researched. The
project has also attracted much
media attention and members
have excitedly taken part in TV,
newspaper and radio interviews,
and they are featured in a recent
edition of Disability Now.
It’s been a fantastic journey, at
times an emotional roller-coaster
involving immense courage from
the young people, but ultimately
an extremely empowering and
enriching experience which
continues to grow.
For more details please contact:
Sarah Howard, 0117 903 8918
For disablist hate crime
please contact DICE
(Disablist Incident and
Crime Education 0117 377 2732,
www.voscur.org26
Children & Young People
Listening Partnership - Tackling Bullying
www.voscur.org 27
Children & Young People
Report of the Voscur Children and Young People’s Network Meeting on Tuesday 24 March 2009
The recent meeting of the Network
focused on Young People with
a presentation by Les Compton,
Deputy Head of Youth and Play
Services, Bristol City Council on
‘The Future of Positive Activities’.
Members provided feedback on
the documentation. This is out for
consultation, with details on the
Voscur website.
Tom Blower and Patricia
Rodger from Right Track gave
a presentation on ‘Improving
Outcomes for BME Young People’.
Further details can be viewed
on the Voscur website at www.
voscur.org/networks/children
Trevor Jones spoke about the
successful MyPlace bid, which
Young Bristol is leading on and
more details are provided in the
following article.
The next Children and
Young people’s Assembly
will be held on Tuesday
23 June, 9.30 - 12.30 - venue to
be confirmed. [email protected].
MyPlace - Bristol
MyPlace is a fund that will deliver
£190m of Government capital
investment. The facilities will be
driven by the active participation of
young people in the development,
design and running of the project.
Following an initial meeting
organised by Voscur, it was decided
that the voluntary sector should
lead on the bid. Young Bristol is
the lead organisation, working in
partnership with the public and
private sector.
This bid has been successful in
securing £5 million for Bristol.
Currently planned to be in the
Bridewell Island site, MyPlace Bristol
will deliver a world-class facility
for all young people in Bristol,
accessible by public transport, in
a safe, neutral location, that links
young people to the services and
activities they need to progress.
It will be open at times when
young people need it, especially at
weekends and evenings.
MyPlace Bristol, where over 35,000
young people ‘belong’, will have its
own community of young people
leading the programme and
managing the facility, supported by
skilled adults. These young people
will come together to ensure that
their peers feel welcome and have
the services they need, ensuring
the style of facility and delivery
appeals to young people from
different areas, backgrounds and
cultures.
To get involved, contact Trevor
Jones at [email protected].
Focus on Young People: Positive Activities; Improving Outcomes for BME Young People
Young People want Somewhere to go that’s fun, stylish, not tacky, offering good activities including arts and sport
'bridewell Island site'
How To - Funding and Finance
www.voscur.org28
Awards for AllAwards for All will award grants
of between £300 and £10,000 to
community projects that meet one
or more of the BIG Lottery Fund’s
outcomes. These are:
People have better chances •
in life, with better access to
training and development to
improve their life skills
Stronger communities, with •
more active citizens working
together to tackle their
problems
Improved rural and urban •
environments, which
communities are better able to
enjoy
Healthier and more active •
people and communities
The scheme is open to a wide
variety of constituted organisations
including voluntary, community
and social enterprise groups (vcse),
schools, health organisations,
parish and town councils. Only one
application can be considered at a
time. Organisations cannot receive
more than £10,000 in any two-year
period.
Awards for All supports costs
of new projects only, such as
equipment hire or purchase,
sessional workers, training,
transport costs and venue hire.
Groups looking for day-to-day
running costs should consider the
Reaching Communities programme
instead.
BIG has simplified the application
process and will not require
documents such as accounts and
bank statements with applications.
BIG aims to assess applications
within 6 weeks and if it wants
to fund the project, will make a
conditional grant offer and request
the additional information at this
point. There are no application
deadlines.
Awards for All may still fund some
sports, arts or heritage activities,
but not if they are the main aim
of the project. For example,
they would fund a project to get
homeless people fit and active
through setting up a football
league, but would not fund a
project to set up a football league
for homeless people, since sport,
rather than healthy living is the
focus. If the main focus of the
project is to support sports, arts or
heritage activities applications must
be made to the most appropriate
body.
Awards for All: 08454 102030,
www.awardsforall.org.uk
generalenquiries@
awardsforall.org.uk
Arts Council EnglandThe Arts Council England’s
Grants for The Arts scheme is for
individuals, groups of artists, arts
organisations and other people
who use the arts in their work.
This includes organisations whose
normal activity is not related to the
arts, including vcse groups. Grants
should:
Increase opportunities for the •
public to engage people in the
arts
Help artists and arts •
organisations in England carry
out their work
Activities that could be funded
include projects and events,
commissions and productions,
participatory activities, educational
activities, touring and buying
equipment or instruments.
There is no specific small grants
application form, but applications
Focus on Lottery Small Grants ProgrammesOn 1 April 2009 funding for National Lottery small grants changed. Each
Lottery distributor will now administer their own small grants programme.
How To - Funding and Finance
www.voscur.org 29
for under £5000 will receive a
decision within 6 weeks. There are
no application deadlines. Applicants
usually need to find at least 10%
match funding.
Arts Council England:
0845 300 6200
www.artscouncil.org.uk
Heritage Lottery FundHeritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has
three main aims:
Learning: helping people learn •
about their own and other
people’s heritage
Conservation: conserving •
the UK’s diverse heritage for
present and future generations
to experience and enjoy
Participation: encouraging •
people to take a more active
part in and make decisions
about their heritage
All projects must address the first
aim and at least one of the other
two.
There are 2 small grants schemes:
Young Roots make grants of 1.
£3000 - £25,000 to projects
which involve young people
aged 13-25 in finding out
about their own and other
peoples’ heritage.
Your Heritage makes grants of 2.
£3,000 - £50,000 to projects
that relate to the local, regional
or national heritage of the UK
and that help people to learn
about and look after their
heritage.
Both schemes are open to
both public and not-for-
profit organisations including
vcse groups, local authorities,
youth organisations and parish
councils. Groups must be
properly constituted. There are no
application deadlines, and decisions
take up to 10 weeks.
In the South West, HLF is actively
encouraging applications from
Black and Minority Ethnic
communities, groups that
demonstrate real involvement
of young people in managing
and directing projects, first time
applicants and applications under
£10,000.
Heritage Lottery Fund:
020 7591 6042
www.hlf.org.uk
Sport EnglandSport England’s small grants
programme funds community-
level sporting activities. It is open
to not-for-profit sports groups,
vcse groups, local authorities and
educational institutions.
Grants of £300 - £10,000 are
available for revenue and small
capital projects. All costs including
salaries must be specific to the
project. Projects must contribute
to growing and sustaining
participation in community sport or
help improve performance in sport.
Application is via an online
application form and decisions
should take no more than 6
weeks (alternative options are
available for those without Internet
access). Projects should be up to
12 months in duration. Groups
can receive up to £10,000 in any
12 month period, and may also
apply to other Sport England
programmes at the same time.
Sport England:
0845 8508508.
www.sportengland.org
www.voscur.org30
How to – Green Pages
Community Focus on Parks
Park Keepers
Bristol is fortunate to have
amongst the highest amount of
green space per head of population
of any city in the UK. Many of the
city’s parks and green spaces have
active community groups who care
for and champion them.
There are more than 60 voluntary,
community sector park groups
in Bristol playing a crucial role in
caring for and championing the
city’s parks and green spaces to
ensure they are kept as pleasant
spaces for everyone to enjoy.
Bristol Parks’ Forum was
established by Bristol Parks as
an umbrella organisation for
community park groups and
organisations in the city with
an interest in their local parks
and green spaces. The forum is
supported by Bristol City Council
but acts independently and is
currently the only ‘community
voice’ that is dedicated to all of
Bristol’s green spaces.
Find out more about the Bristol
Parks Forum and Voluntary and
Community Park groups in Bristol
at: www.bristolparksforum.org.uk
Some park groups in Bristol:
Friends of St Andrews
Park, bishopston
The Friends of St Andrews Park is
for anyone that uses the beautiful
park in St Andrews, Bristol. They
want to keep it beautiful and an
asset for the local people and those
who travel from further away to
enjoy activities including swimming,
sliding, walking, running or just
sitting!
The friends group is currently
raising funds for a memorial to the
six crew of the Wellington bomber
who died when they crashed into
St Andrews Park on 30 April 1941.
The plan is to erect a stone made
from black Welsh slate with a
picture of a Wellington in flight
and a dedication to the crew and
rescuers on it near to the wall on
Sommerville Road where the plane
came to rest.
To find out more about the
Friends of St Andrews Park visit:
www.friendsofstandrewspark.
ning.com
big P Celebration in Willmott
(Spacemakers) Park, Hartcliffe
The Willmott Park Group was
established in 2006 with the
St Andrews Park
support of Hartcliffe and
Withywood Community Partnership
(HWCP), Safer Bristol and other
partners. The group is now run by
local residents. In April, the park
hosted The Big P - a big community
play festival. The event took place
around the top section of Willmott
Park (SpaceMakers), also making
use of the Park Pod, The Core and
Early Years Centre.
The Big P celebrated play and
youth provision in and around the
area of Hartcliffe and Withywood.
It provided an opportunity for local
project, clubs, groups, volunteers,
parents, young people as well as
local play services and schools to
demonstrate the activities/services
they provide for children and
young people in the area.
The aim of the event was to
raise awareness of the wide
range of exciting high quality
play opportunities available and
accessible to every child and
young person in Hartcliffe and
Withywood. The Big P set out to
engage children, young people
and adults in learning about the
environment, how it can be used
and looked after, making open
spaces and parks safe, clean and
positive place to be and play.
For more details about Willmott
Park contact: Nigel Stoneman,
0117 903 8044 or
Friends of Greville Smyth Park
(FrOGS), Ashton
FrOGS is a community-based group
working to improve all aspects
of Greville Smyth Park in Ashton,
South Bristol. Over the past four
years the group has helped secure
new play and sports facilities,
hosted a number of popular events
and seen the establishment of a
wildflower meadow.
In partnership with local residents,
schoolchildren, charitable bodies
and the City Council, FrOGS have
helped revitalise the oldest public
park in Bristol. The group has built
up good relations with local Police
and the Council in addressing anti-
social behaviour. As a result, Greville
Smyth Park is enjoying a renewed
popularity with all sections of the
community and offering a practical
example of the ways people can
improve their local park.
In March, local arts company ‘Once’
presented ‘Sing in the Spring,’ a
tale of hope and renewal, alongside
local singing groups and school
children who sang their spring
songs for the new season. The
local community, young and old,
gathered at dusk to enjoy singing
and performance, and to celebrate
the passing of winter and to
welcome spring to the park. The
event was very well attended and
the weather was grand.
To find out more about the
Friends of Greville Smyth park visit:
www.frogs.org.uk
www.voscur.org 31
How to – Green Pages
Willmot Park Greville Smyth Park
www.voscur.org32
Volunteers’ Week 25th anniversary
Volunteers’ Week, the UK’s annual
celebration of volunteers and
volunteering, is 1 - 7 June. This
year Volunteers’ Week reaches a
special milestone as it celebrates its
25th anniversary. During the week
events are held across the country
to recognise, reward and recruit
volunteers.
Volunteering Bristol is currently
putting together plans to celebrate
the week, and the Move into
Public Life course taking place at
the Council House will be dealing
with volunteering opportunities
in public life as its 2 June session.
Visit www.voscur.org/training for
more information.
Many volunteer-involving
organisations in Bristol make
Volunteers’ Week special for their
own volunteers by holding annual
social events and recognition days
when their volunteers are thanked
for the support they have given
during the past year.
Paul Madine
www.bristolvolunteers.org.uk
Volunteer Managers benefit from greater support
Volunteering Bristol has been awarded a significant grant from the Big Lottery Fund specifically to give direct support to volunteer managers and organisers working for voluntary organisations in Bristol.
A Volunteer Support Co-ordinator
and an administrative assistant will
be employed on the project to help
improve the ability of organisations
which involve volunteers to recruit,
train and retain their volunteers,
and to provide guidance, training
and resources to groups in Bristol
to improve their management of
volunteers.
The new resources and support will
provide structured programmes
of training, to be delivered in
association with Voscur, on a wide
range of subjects. The Big Lottery
funding will subsidise the training
costs so that even the smallest
voluntary or community group that
uses volunteers may attend.
Volunteering Bristol
british Trust for Conservation Volunteers (bTCV) volunteers at work
www.voscur.org 33
Volunteering Bristol
We will also be looking to
identify gaps in standards, and
offer support to organisations
needing extra help with volunteer
recruitment and management
processes.
In particular we will be working
with self-help groups dependent
on volunteers for their day-to-day
operations, to help them establish
basic policies of good governance
and volunteer management.
As some of these groups are
supporting black and minority
ethnic communities, we will be
devoting a significant amount of
our time and effort to working
within those communities.
More established and larger groups
with most of their good-practice
volunteer management policies
and procedures in place will be
helped to achieve quality and
accreditation standards.
The overall project will work
through the Volunteer Organisers’
Forum to share information and
help resolve problems. Expected
to start in May, it is funded to run
for 30 months, with a sustainable
on-going programme of support
continuing beyond 2011.
How many people volunteer?
The last comprehensive survey of volunteering trends in the UK was done in 1997.
It revealed that 48% of respondents
had taken part in voluntary
activity over the past year. 74%
said that they had taken part in
an informal voluntary activity.
29% of respondents were regular
volunteers volunteering on at least
a monthly basis. 21% volunteered
on a weekly basis. The figures
suggested that slightly fewer
people were volunteering than in
1991 when the previous survey was
done.
The 2001 Home Office Citizenship
Survey also looked at the number
of people participating in
volunteering. It said that 39% of
people volunteered formally at
least once in the last 12 months,
and 27% had done so at least once
a month. It also stated that, in the
last twelve months, 67% of people
had volunteered informally, and
34% had done so at least once a
month. This suggests a drop in the
number of people volunteering,
although it has been suggested
that those who do volunteer do
more hours than they used to.
It’s important to take care when
making comparisons between the
two sets of figures, however, as the
research methodologies used were
very different from one another.
More information:
snipurl.com/gg6pr
bTCV volunteer
“This is a really exciting time for
the Bristol Partnership. There is
a belief that we have to make
it work and to have some quick
wins, so partners see that ’buy-
in’ is a benefit and not a threat,
and that the Partnership is a very
effective way of doing business for
everyone.
“We can’t have this conversation
without reflecting the challenge
of the recession. We all hope to
manage as well as possible however
we don’t entirely know how deep
and how long it will go on and the
impact it will have on business or
the voluntary sector. There is a
need to be focused on the impact
of these problems.
“There are sectors that are a feeling
the squeeze quickly and firmly.
It is going to be tough and there
are limits to what we can achieve
but I feel optimistic about what
commitment there is to creative
and innovative ideas to mitigate
the worst of the impact. The City
Council is looking at match funding
to help some of the groups at the
sharp end.
“The Partnership has launched the
Recession Mitigation Fund and
we’re establishing a Recession
Resilience Task Force to harvest
ideas about ways of working, and
supporting organisations and each
other so that we can share ideas
and facilitate co-operation.
“It’s important that
Neighbourhoods are about
local people raising and solving
problems. It’s not about imposing
things on neighbourhoods. I want
to make sure neighbourhoods are
aware of all the problems faced
by local residents. We are lending
weight to neighbourhoods so they
can take the action needed to
achieve their own priorities.
“This is a big job, but it is important
to remember that it’s not just
me who does it. I’m the glue - to
make sure that people are aware of
other people’s agendas. To provide
the support and challenge to
organisations and Boards to deliver
on the things that are important
to the people of Bristol. Progress is
being made.”
Jargon BusterLocal Area Agreement
The key targets agreed between
the council and the government,
against which progress will be
assessed.
www.voscur.org34
Interview - Bristol Partnership
“I feel optimistic about what commitment there is to creative and innovative ideas to mitigate the worst of the impact.”Linda Prosser, director of the Bristol Partnership
The Role of the Bristol PartnershipMatthew Symonds, Voscur’s Participation Manager, interviews Linda Prosser who took up the post of Director of the Bristol Partnership in March. Linda speaks about her new role, how the Bristol Partnership will deal with the impact of the recession and the role of neighbourhoods in the Partnership.
www.voscur.org 35
I do volunteer. I’ve volunteered all my life. Lots
of youth things – that’s my passion. Teenagers,
unsupported in our society and our community are
hugely vulnerable and it’s to all of our detriment if
they are not supported. I gain a connection with an
age group that I don’t have much connection with,
but that I really enjoy being with, and I’ve got some
experience that could be really useful.
Anne Malindine
Southville CDA
Yes I do. I’m on the management committee of
St Werburghs’ Community Association, the board
of Asian Arts Association, on the management
committee of a choir I sing with and I also do a
lot of running around for a band called RSVP.
Volunteering keeps me in touch with the kind of
work I’ve been doing for the past 20 years, from
the other side. It is putting some value back into
the community.
Lyn Porter
St Werburghs’ Community Association
Definitely. I volunteer with the Brislington
Community Partnership in every aspect from
housing to planning, road traffic and related issues.
That way I don’t owe anything to anybody and I
can speak my mind. It’s a very rewarding thing
when you can get a point over – particularly against
the party politics of life.
David Waters
Brislington Community Partnership
I do volunteer in lots of things. Right now I’m
involved with Muslim Midlife Life Check planning
groups, we’re doing an event to raise health
awareness. I helped at Victim Support last year.
There’s loads you can get from volunteering, there
is the experience of learning new things, meeting
new people and developing your knowledge. You
can also network and it helps to develop your
confidence. It is a really enjoyable experience.
Farhana Masuk
Participant, Councillor Shadowing Scheme.
Have Your Say - Vox Pops
National Volunteering Week
““
National Volunteering Week takes place between 1 – 7 June. During April we asked a selection of our members this question:
“Do you volunteer and what benefits do you get from volunteering?”
Voscur Ltd. The CREATE CentreSmeaton RoadBristolBS1 6XN
Tel: 0117 909 9949Fax: 0117 933 0501Email: [email protected]: www.voscur.org
Voscur Diary May/June 2009
May
Tuesday 12 May Writing Better Funding Bids The Gatehouse Centre, Hareclive Road, Bristol, BS13 9JN (9.30am – 3.30pm)
Tuesday 19 May Neighbourhood Partnership Residents’ Forum Broadmead Baptist Church, Union Street, Broadmead, Bristol BS1 3HY (10.00am – 12noon)
Wednesday 20 May How to Develop a Business Plan CEED, Ujima House, Wilder Street, Bristol BS2 8QU (9.30am -3.30pm)
Saturday 30 May Register your interest – Trustee Series 3 – So you think you’re a charity? – Legal structures for organisations Rose Green Centre, 65 Gordon Road, Whitehall, Bristol BS5 7DL (10.00am – 1.00pm)
June
Tuesday 02 June Trustee Series 1 – Why am I on the committee? The City Academy, Russell Town Avenue, Bristol, BS5 9JH (6.30 – 9.30pm)
Tuesday 09 June Trustee Series 2 – Good Governance – How to be a better Trustee The City Academy, Russell Town Avenue, Bristol, BS5 9JH (6.30 – 9.30pm)
Wednesday 17 June Making Outcomes Work for You The Withywood Centre, Queens Road, Withywood, Bristol BS13 8QA (9.30am - 4pm)
Tuesday 23 June Voscur Assembly (Children & Young People) Venue to be confirmed (9.30 - 1pm)
Tuesday 30 June Community Buildings Network Meeting Southmead Community Centre, Greystoke Avenue, Southmead, Bristol, BS10 6BQ (10.00am – 12.30pm. Registration, drinks and networking from 9.30am)
Trustee Series 3 – So you think you’re a charity? Understanding legal structures for organisations Black Development Agency, Russell Town Avenue, Bristol, BS5 9LT (10.00am – 1.00pm)
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